Badan Penelitian dan Pengembangan Pertanian

Mechanization is a key component for modern agriculture in achieving sustainable food self-sufficiency targets.

"Moreover, the advanced technology of mechanization will bring Indonesia to be a world food barn," said Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Ir. H. Andi Amran Sulaeman, MP when launching Mechanization of Modern Horticulture, Thursday (24/08/2017) in the Indonesian Center for Agricultural Engineering Research and Development (ICAERD), Serpong, Banten Province.

Minister of Agriculture explained that agricultural mechanization technology could increase the production by 10%, reduce crop losses by 10.2% and save production cost by 40%. "For example, once harvest 1 ha takes 25 days, but with the progress of agricultural mechanization today is only 3 hours," said the Minister of Agriculture.

Mechanization can also save rice harvest losses of 10.2% or equivalent to 7 million tons, valued of Rp 28 Trillion. Previously, it was cost 2 million per ha to harvest, but with mechanization technology it only paid 1 million per ha.

Director of IAARD, Dr. Ir. Muhamad Syakir, MS explained that the application of agricultural mechanization in horticulture farming is one form of agricultural transformation towards modernization that characterized high productivity, efficien, produce high quality and high value added output.

In the past three years, IAARD has generated many innovations in horticultural technology, livestock, plantation, agricultural mechanization and other supporting field, such as biotechnology, mapping, fertilization and post-harvest agriculture.

"IAARD has successfully developed modern seed breeding technology to support the development of horticultural products. This machine can also be used for seeding other commodities. The development of modern mechanization technology is developed completely, including the development of breeding institutions, both private and farmer groups, "added Head Balitbangtan.

A number of 24 prototypes launched is the effort to fulfil the government's priority programs in the development of horticultural seeds that consist of 7,000 ha of shallot, 15,000 ha of chilli and 200 ha of garlic.

The need for shallots, especially at certain times, increased and often did not coincide with the harvest season. National demand for shallots was recorded at 90 thousand tons per month.

To meet the needs of seeds in the development of shallots, IAARD has also produced botany seed innovation or True Shallot Seed (TSS).

Advantages of TSS innovation include increaseing crop productivity due to no or less carrying infectious seed disease, such as viruses from seed bulbs, no dormancy and longer shelf life (2 years), less seed requirement (5-7 kg/ha), low seed costs, as well as easier storage and distribution.

The automatic unit of TSS innovation on seedbed is able to prepare seeds automatically for about 720 trays per hour, or 75,600 mini seedlings per hour or equivalent to 604,800 mini seeds per day when working for 8 hours per day. So the machinery unit for TSS processing is able to prepare mini seeds for about 5-6 ha per day.

The analysis of farming system with modern mechanized support (those launched machines) could reduce the cost of shallots for Rp 33.898.000/ha (efficiency 45.0%) and chilli Rp 28.628.000/ha (efficiency 38.0%) compared to manual production.

All prototypes of machinery for horticulture products are in the planning to be reproduced by domestic companies through licensing cooperation. In fact, up date, there have been about 40 companies who are interested to massively produce these products. (vwh)